Gusein Mamed Ogly Arablinskii

(real surname, Khalafov). Born 1881, in Baku; died 1919, in Baku. Azerbaijani actor and director. From 1905 he appeared as a professional actor. He worked in the first Azerbaijani troupes of the Nidzhat, Safa, and other societies. He was one of the founders of Azerbaijani theatrical art.

Arablinskii’s works expressed progressive democratic and humanistic ideas; he created images of prominent persons such as Fakhrad (The Unhappy Youth by Akhverdov) and Fakhreddin (Fakhreddin’s Woe by Vezirov), as well as of ordinary people, such as the smith Giave (in the play of the same name by Sh. Sami, in S. Akhundov’s version). He gave accusatory and satirical characteristics to the roles of Aga Mukhammed-shakh Kadzhar (in the play of the same name by Akhverdov) and Geidarbek (The Skinflint’s Adventure by M. F. Akhundov). One of Arablinskii’s prominent roles was that of Othello in the tragedy by Shakespeare. Arablinskii produced the plays of M. F. Akhundov, A. Akhverdov, N. Vezirov, and Dzh. Mamedkulizade, the musical dramas of U. Gadzhibekov, and productions of classical Russian (Khlestakov in Gogol’s The Inspector General) and foreign dramaturgy. He influenced the work of many prominent Azerbaijani actors. He was killed by the Musavatists.